The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Travel
The Caribbean is back – like a big warm hug
As cruise lines begin a phased return to the region, Teresa Machan picks 10 life-affirming voyages for a burst of winter sun
After months of travel turmoil, an island-hopping cruise in the Caribbean this winter sounds like a big warm hug. Can we get there? Probably. Will it be hassle-free? More so than at any time in the past 18 months, for sure. Cruise lines have begun their phased return to the region and, at the time of writing, most Caribbean islands (along with Mexico and the Central American countries of Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico and Belize) were on the Government’s green or amber lists (see gov.uk).
Sparkling seas, candy floss-pink sunsets and a rolling carousel of islands have never been more appealing – and activities and excursions run the gamut from rainforest hikes, coastal kayaking and wreck diving to tasting locally handmade chocolate.
Winter sun? Bring it on. Here are some of the most tempting options.
BRITANNIA RULES FOR KIDS
With activities for children, complimentary babysitting and age-specific children’s clubs (Splashers, Surfers and Scubas), P&O Cruises’ Britannia is a win-win for young families. The ship, sailing from Barbados this winter, also has a spa and a wine bar stocked by connoisseur Olly Smith and offers speciality dining from the likes of celebrity pâttissier Eric Lanlard. This cruise first heads west to Curaçao and Bonaire, dipping down to Grenada, then north to St Maarten before looping back to Barbados.
A 14-night Caribbean cruise costs from £1,566pp departing Bridgetown on November 5 2021. Includes gratuities, children’s clubs and return flight from Gatwick, or Manchester for a £100pp supplement (cruise.co.uk).
IT’S NOT JUST ISLANDS…
In addition to the thousands of islands and cays scattered across the Caribbean, there are the countries bordering it – including Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. Heading west from Miami, this three-and-a-half week sailing with Regent Seven Seas calls at ports in Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama and Colombia – before dropping anchor at 11 island ports. The cruise is aboard Regent Seven Seas Explorer, a sumptuous, all-inclusive ship featuring some of the most extravagant suites at sea. (Costa Rica, Panama and Colombia are currently on the Government’s red list.) A 24-night Crystalline Waters and Shining Shores cruise costs from £9,679pp departing round-trip from Miami on November 15 2021. The price includes flights, excursions and free-flowing drinks (rssc.com)
BUBBLY ON THE BEACH
Seabourn’s decadent “Caviar in the Surf ’’ affair is pretty much a given in the Caribbean. During a water sports day in St Vincent and the Grenadines, the ship’s speedboats (one loaded with caviar) plus a kitchen and bar, sailing boats, kayaks and snorkelling gear are sent to a nearby bay. From a pearly white beach, guests wade to a floating surfboard “bar” manned by uniformed staff proffering chilled champagne and caviar. The ship, Seabourn Odyssey, also visits the yachtys’ haven of Soper’s Hole on Tortola, French-owned Martinique and mountainous Dominica.
A seven-day Classic Yachtsman’s Caribbean cruise costs from £3,699pp departing November 20 to 27 2021. Excludes flights (seabourn.com)
JUST LIKE DRY LAND
In the Caribbean it’s not uncommon for cruise lines to acquire an island, to be used for picnics and barbecues, walks and water sports. Holland America Line has one of the loveliest, in Half Moon Cay, where you can ride horses in the surf, paddle a kayak or head off on a nature hike. HAL’s new flagship, Rotterdam, will spend her maiden season in the Caribbean, sailing to Half Moon Cay on two itineraries from Fort Lauderdale. A four-day Bahamas and Key West cruise, round-trip from Fort Lauderdale, costs from £549pp, departing on November 3 2021.
Excludes flights (hollandamerica.com)
IF YOU LOVE HOTELS…
Tui comes up trumps with its Cruise and Stay holidays, which offer the best of land and sea at wallet-friendly prices. Hotel options in Jamaica range from treehouse-style Sunset at the Palms in Negril to clifftop Couples Sans Souci in Ocho Rios. This itinerary on Marella Explorer 2 visits Honduras, Guatemala, Belize and Mexico, with excursions to
Mayan temples (in Belize) and the Mesoamerican Reef (in Honduras). Seven-night Exotic Explorer cruise from £1,189pp departing from Birmingham on December 14 2021 (tui.co.uk/cruise)
TOTALLY TORTOLA
Bioluminescent kayaking, a bean-tobar chocolate experience and a deepsea fishing expedition off the island of Tortola are among the options on Viking’s cruise in the West Indies. Setting sail from San Juan in Puerto Rico, the itinerary meanders around the Lesser Antilles, soaking up the islands’ British, French and Dutch influences, visiting palm-fringed beaches in Tortola and St Lucia and the mountains and valleys of Dominica. The cruise is aboard the 960-passenger Viking Sea. An 11-day West Indies Explorer roundtrip from San Juan costs from £2,990pp departing on December 13 2021.
Includes nine excursions, flights and drinks with meals (viking.com)
INSTAGRAM READY
When Celebrity Cruises debuted its “Edge” class ship in 2018, Instagram purred. Breaking the mould were a cantilevered “Magic Carpet” bar, which glides between decks, luxe Kelly Hoppen villas – some with plunge pools – and a rooftop lounge-cum-garden. That blueprint remains on family-friendly sister ship Celebrity Apex, which will this winter call at St Thomas (US Virgin Islands), Antigua, St Lucia, and St Kitts and Nevis. Apex has accessible cabins and offers autism-friendly cruising.
A nine-night Puerto Rico, St Thomas and St Kitts Cruise costs from £3,128pp, departing on November 4 2021. The price includes unlimited drinks and tips (celebritycruises.com)
ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS
At Christmas, Caribbean islanders put on a good show with parades, live soca or reggae and mountains of food. Oceania Cruises’ Sunny Festivities cruise soaks up Dutch vibes in the Netherlands Antilles – Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao. In Kralendijk, Bonaire, excursions include a visit to Washington-Slagbaai National Park – a habitat for parakeets, iguanas, flamingos and nesting turtles. From Oranjestad in Aruba, there is horse riding or twotank scuba dives. The ship also has an excellent cooking school (book early). A 12-night Sunny Festivities cruise on Oceania Riviera costs from £4,215pp departing round-trip from Miami on December 23 2021 and includes flights (panachecruises.com)
BOXING DAY ON THE BAY
Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are spent at sea on this Azamara cruise. However, passengers wake on Boxing Day to the picture-perfect bay of Charlotte Amalie in the US Virgin Islands – the first of nine Caribbean ports of call. Before it heads back to Miami, the midsized Azamara Quest makes a bonus port of call at sultry Key West, on Florida’s southern tip.
A 15-night Caribbean Holiday Voyage costs from £2,549pp round-trip from
Miami departing on December 23 2021. Excludes flights (azamara.co.uk)
NO FLY ZONE
If you have time on your hands in the New Year, or don’t fancy flying, get to Liverpool or Southampton, where Fred Olsen’s brand-new Borealis will be heading off on a 34-night Caribbean odyssey. No airport hassle, no luggage woes; just five weeks of island-hopping around Antigua and Barbuda, St Kitts, the Virgin Islands, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Belize, Mexico and Bermuda, before heading home via the Atlantic.
A 34-night Cultural Caribbean and the Americas cruise costs from £3,999pp, departing Southampton on January 6 or Liverpool on January 4 2021 ( fredolsencruises.com).
The FCDO currently advises against international cruise ship travel. Overseas holidays are subject to restrictions. See page 3.